Fighting for Dawn
by t.j.guard
Summary: Sequel to Outlaw. An old enemy of Tally's returns, and the scene behind Jesse's display is right in the center of it all. Ahk/OC, hints of Jed/Oct
1. Prologue

Outlaw: Fighting for Dawn

Disclaimer: I don't own Night at the Museum

A/N: Continuation of Outlaw, pairings still apply.  
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Prologue

Jesse leaned against the wall of the Western Wing, examining the exhibits, from forever immobile trains to stagecoaches which never went anywhere, wanted posters of people he barely recognized, often in groups, talking amongst themselves. Even waxworks like himself from different scenes depicted in the wing were discussing, explaining, doing business.

He sighed, wondering what was becoming of him. He'd recently overheard McPhee tell one of the night guards about an outgoing transfer, just when he was getting used to waking up.

His eyes drifted to the scene at the back of his display, which now portrayed a town he was entirely unfamiliar with, with posters of people he never even saw before in his life, and there was one man who watched him intently from the town square, a man with a harsh face and eyes of stone, which was very hard to look away from and even harder to shake off as if it were nothing.

He turned his back to the picture and walked out of the wing, but he could still feel the cold eyes boring into his soul as if everything which protected it had been reduced to butter.

The lobby, however, was packed with exhibits, and Jesse could put his mind at ease almost immediately. He carefully noted the absence of certain key players, such as Tally and Ahkmenrah, who were usually almost fixed objects at gatherings like this.

"Have you seen Tally?" Ahkmenrah asked, taking Jesse entirely by surprise.

"Wha-oh, no. Ain't seen her."

"Oh, then perhaps she's had to get the results of her drug test."

"They test for that stuff now?"

"Of course, it's a job requirement. After all, she's done it before."

"'Kay, then, if it's a regular thing. 'S long as she'll be back."

Ahkmenrah walked into the crowd and all but vanished.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Tally walked out of McPhee's office, weighing what the drug test administrators had told her. Given the circumstances, she had no idea how on earth it could work out, but eventually, she found Ahkmenrah in the tight-knit crowd in the lobby.

"What happened?" he asked.

"I'm drug-free, thankfully, but we need to talk."

"Talk? What do you mean?"

"C'mon." Tally led Ahkmenrah into the Egyptian wing, where the sounds of the party were barely a murmur.

"So what is it you want to tell me?"

"I...you..."

"Yes?"

"You're a...you're a father."

"Oh, congratulations," Ahkmenrah cried, pulling Tally into a tight embrace. "I always wanted a child."

"You're...crushing...me."

"Oh, sorry." He released her, allowing her to get some air. "It's just such great news."

"For you, maybe, but for me, not quite. I mean, given the way I'm connected to the tablet, what could happen to this child?"

"I imagine it will be a great power in the world."

"So what do we do when its two, three, and throws temper tantrums?"

"We can bind its powers, I know there's a way."

"Don't you see what goes into this? Don't you see why I'm so worried? And what if the child doesn't even survive past infancy? That's been known to happen."

"Yes, it has, but since medicine has advanced so, I'm sure it will be fine. It's in very good hands, after all."

Tally smiled and leaned into Ahkmenrah, who held her gently. "What if it kills me?"

"You've really given this a lot of thought in two hours."

"I need to. I need to know if I really want this thing. I need to know the risks, the challenges, I need to know everything I can."

"This seems to be a great challenge to you."

"Of course, I've never been pregnant before. Besides, what if Apep or some other Egyptian god wants this baby and decides to kill me to get it?"

"Then I swear on my life that I will avenge you and get our child back, just for you."

"Thanks." Tally squeezed Ahkmenrah's torso almost playfully.

"You're welcome. After all, I do love you."

"I love you, too. You know that." Tally and Ahkmenrah remained silent for a while before she said, "There's more."

"What is it, my love?"

"What's the practice in Egypt when someone in my position is having the pharaoh's child?"

"Well, what is it that you want?"

"What do you mean? I want to know what the practice is that you're used to."

"I didn't marry anyone outside of my sister, out of strict necessity, and I want to know what it is that will make you happy."

"Will you let me think about it?"

"If that's what will make you happy."

"Actually, that's why I asked. I don't know what I want."

"Well, then, in that case, I assume some thought would be necessary."

"Okay. I guess I've really gotta think about it, then."

Tally pulled away gently, and together, they walked to the lobby.

Larry almost completed a circuit around the fringes of the party in the lobby when he crossed paths with Jesse. "You know who's leavin'?" the outlaw asked.

"We haven't worked that out yet, but whoever it is will be the first to know."

"Thanks, good to know."

"No problem. Enjoying the party?"

"Yeah, more or less."

"Y'know, sometimes exhibits get homesick."

"So I ain't the only one?"

"No, you're not."

"I kept hearin' how I was somebody called a 'Robin Hood,' an' nobody wants to listen to me when I say it ain't true."

"Then let them have the myths. You're the man himself, so you know the truth."

"'Kay, guess I have to."

"Don't you wanna have fun?"

"Don't think I can."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure."

Jesse walked around to the front door and walked out into the New York night. Slowly, as if almost in a trance, he took a seat on the top step and stared at the skyscraper lights, accepting the sounds of all the cars passing by as company.

Tally walked out onto the porch, facing Jesse's back. "You can't seriously expect to be able to stay out here all night," she said.

"I know," he replied. "Jus' had to think."

"Well, is that a coincidence or is that a coincidence? I came out here to think, too."

"Well, ain't that weird. You got somethin' on your mind, too?"

"Well, it's more than that. I understand you're the one that might be leaving, but look at it this way: you may never have to deal with people again."

"I can get behind that. So what's on your mind?"

Tally swallowed and took a step toward the rail. "I just had a drug test a couple weeks ago, and the results came back today."

"That all?"

Tally chewed her lip. "If you ask Ahkmenrah, he'll tell you the same thing I might, but what's it matter if you can't make any use of it?"

"I actually think someone from my picture display's about to kill me."

"I'd ask why, but there was a price on your head, in the tens of thousands of dollars, as I recall."

"Yeah, I was that important."

"I wouldn't say 'important.' I'd choose the word 'prolific.'"

"Whatever you wanna say, I was important."

"You wanna know something cool?"

"What?"

"Even in our time, if anyone asks who you are, people stare at him like he has two heads."

Jesse chuckled and smirked. "Good to know."

"How's it feel being a legend?"

"Dunno yet. Haven't been able to act on it, least, not today."

"Okay, then. I wanna take another look at your display, if that's okay."

"Oh, yeah, sure. Go ahead."

Tally walked back into the museum and found her way around the fray and through several corridors to the Western Wing. The window into the world was guarded by two raggedly dressed, smoking men, each armed with twin revolvers. In all honesty, the scene didn't seem at all surprising, until she saw the face of an older gentleman, glowering at her, his arms folded across his chest.

She backed away carefully, avoiding taking her eyes off the scene at all costs until she got to the lobby, where she finally shook the feeling of being watched.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Tally made her rounds several minutes before the late show some days later, when someone walked into the museum, making a beeline for McPhee. She carefully followed the primly dressed woman, who had gotten straight to the point. "I want to hold my wedding here."

"I really don't think we can host weddings," McPhee replied as jovially as possible.

"I want to hold my wedding here."

"If we could host it, where would we put it?"

"Excuse me?"

"In what wing could we possibly host the wedding, if we were to host it here?"

"So you want to know the theme?"

"Yes." McPhee flipped through the handbook on his desk. "Oh, wait, it says here that I am able to host your wedding. I just need to know the theme, as you said, so that we can host it in a fitting wing."

"How about we host it in the Western Wing, the reception at least. I've already planned the ceremony in a nearby church."

"Oh, well then. Now, when is this wedding reception to take place?"

Tally walked away then, walking into the Egyptian Wing to let Ahkmenrah out. He nuzzled her nose and kissed her as he did every night, and then he glanced at her stomach. "How is your child?"

"So far so good. I could do without being sick and my bizarre-o craving cycle, but so far, it's going pretty well for a few weeks in."

"Where were you, if I may ask?"

"Apparently someone wants to host a wedding reception here, in the Western Wing."

"Is this a problem?"

"Well, Jesse and I, Jesse in particular, we've been seeing strange things behind his display."

"Has anyone else noticed?"

"I haven't heard any complaints about it, so I guess they think it's some kind of thing to do with Jesse James' dime novels."

"Perhaps it is part of a dime novel."

"What are you talking about?"

Ahkmenrah led Tally into the hall, saying, "It's happened before, once in a British collection and once back in Egypt. The stories themselves have been brought to life by the tablet, manifesting in their nearest representation, image or otherwise. It's always come to pass as soon as the manifestation itself finished the story, but it seems this time, there could be something underlying, something evil."

"Like Apep?"

"Perhaps."

"So, I need to make sure I understand you. There's a dime novel somewhere in the museum about Jesse James, and it's being manifested by the tablet in the image behind his display, and you feel something evil?"

"Yes, but it may not necessarily be a dime novel's influence. It may just be Jesse himself."

"Either way, you think it's Apep's doing?"

"After all, Apep was never killed. He hasn't been killed, he is the eternal serpent."

"So why is he doing this?"

"I can't say. I haven't the knowledge to be able to do so."

Tally closed her eyes and shoved her hands into her pocket. "Does it have anything to do with the reception?"

"It might." Ahkmenrah pulled Tally into his side, his hand on her waist. "I've a feeling this bothers you."

"Well, I've been doing a lot of fighting evil in the past two years. I'm now carrying our child, which is adding to my worries and insanity, and now to make matters worse, we could be up against the demon of darkness again?"

"It could end up being that way, but I know you'll make it."

"How?"

"Because I have eternal faith in you."

Tally sighed and pulled Ahkmenrah into an embrace. He rested his arms gently on her back and closed his eyes. "Ahk?"

"Yes?"

"Do you think we'll be able to keep this child?"

"Of course, and we can give it a life, a complete and certainly eventful one."

"One thing's for sure. It's gonna be a qualified acedemic historian by the time it's fifteen."

Ahkmenrah and Tally shared a laugh before they walked to the lobby together.

Jesse watched McPhee pace about for about ten minutes before he finally asked, "What's got your knickers in a knot?"

"It's the reception. It's in a week and I've no idea how to decorate the wing."

"Ain't the theme western?"

"Yes. How'd you know?"

"You been talking to yourself for about five minutes about it."

"Oh, well then. I haven't realized I've spoken aloud."

"Well, as well as I can judge, this place don't need decoratin'."

"Still, it should at least look presentable."

"'Kay, then. I figure you got pretty much the whole it-looks-real thing goin' for ya, so I don't see what else needs to be done."

"Well, alright, then. I guess I really have no need to worry." McPhee had stopped pacing and instead turned to face Jesse. "Do you honestly think we can pull this off?"

"Well, whaddaya think? I think we've got everythin' we need to pull this off. Hey, if you need a robbery, I'm your man."

"Are you out of your mind?"

"Jus' offerin' my services for your cause."

"Oh, alright then. I'll consider it."

"Thanks."

McPhee rotated his head around his neck, wrung his hands and left the wing.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Tally lay on her bed, her hand on the small bump of her stomach, dwelling on the child within. The sun peered through all the skyscrapers in the east, casting light into her apartment, casting a light on her stomach.

Something in her mind posed a solid argument for her keeping this baby. "After all," the voice in her head argued, "if Ra wants it, you should, too."

She sighed, her eyes roaming the ceiling. She couldn't really decide to keep this child on her own. It was Ahkmenrah's, too, so he had to have a say in what was going on with her body, whether to keep the child or not, and she knew he wanted to keep it.

There was, however, a slight problem, or, more exactly, two slight problems coinciding: the woman's wedding, and the Western dime novel scene, which, if Ahkmenrah was right, meant Jesse James was the protagonist of this dime novel harboring evil, whatever it was called. He had to finish the story, as far as she could readily judge.

She closed her eyes, her head rolling to one side, and she dozed off.

Ahkmenrah helped Larry lift the lid to his sarcophagus, from the inside, and climbed out, placing the crown on his head. "How is Tally?" he asked.

"Oh, she's fine. She's-" he began, gesturing to the hall.

"Here I am," Tally said, cutting Larry off. Ahkmenrah pulled her into an embrace and nuzzled her nose. "Three days until wedding night."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah."

"Time flies by so quickly."

Tally pulled away. "Have you figured out anything else about the dime novel?"

"All I can easily judge is that if it is a Jesse James dime novel we're dealing with, then Jesse James has to finish the story."

"Okay, good. We're on the same page."

"Anyone talkin' 'bout me?" Jesse asked. Tally turned, seeing him leaning against the doorframe, one hand on his hip.

"We're just discussing your display, is all," Tally replied, not hesitating a bit when she added, "As far as we can tell, we've got nothing bad on our hands yet."

"Yet?"

"Well, we don't have any idea if anything really life-threatening will come of this, but you do have to finish the dime novel, or so we think."

"Oh, 'kay, then. I can handle that."

"I hope you can. I fear there may be something lurking behind the facade that none of us readily see," Ahkmenrah said.

"Like what? Demons?"

"Yeah, more or less," Tally said.

"Is it safe for him to go do what he has to do?" Larry asked, gesturing to Jesse but looking at Tally and Ahkmenrah.

"Well, in theory, it should be, so long as he doesn't cross the paths of anyone famous."

"Fat chance that's gonna happen."

"Yeah, knowing Jesse," Larry conceeded. "Okay, moving on. We can worry about this later. We've got a late show on our hands."

Jed sighed and rubbed his eyes, and Octavius slid his arms around the cowboy. "Is something wrong?" he asked.

"I jus' hate the late show. So many kids, 'n their grubby hands all over everythin', and how they's always tryin' to get me."

Octavius pulled Jed closer. "You're safe," he whispered. "I'm with you." Jed turned and buried his face in Octavius' shoulder.

"'S nice a ya lettin' me stay at your place."

"Of course." Octavius kissed Jed's ear and added, "After all, I do love you."

"I love you, too, an' I ain't losin' you. 'N I ain't quittin' you either."

Octavius squeezed gently, and Jedediah sighed. "I shall never leave you."

Tally watched the late show more or less indifferently when the woman she'd watched talk to McPhee about wedding plans walked up to her. "You are Talia, I assume?"

"Who's asking?"

"What, you don't recognize your own mother?"

"You're not my mother, Johanna."

"I gave you life, Talia Johannson. Don't lie to me."

"You may have brought me into this world, and I have little question in your willingness to get me out of it, but you'll never be my mother."

"But you are still my offspring."

"Oh, kill me now."

"Oh, come on. Don't you want to be in my wedding?"

"I'd rather shoot myself."

Johanna slung her arm around Tally's shoulders, causing the latter to cringe. "Just think of how amazing, how much of an honor it is to be in my wedding."

"Again, I'd rather die."

"You'd really pass up this once in a lifetime opportunity of being a bridesmaid in my wedding?"

"Of course. After all, I have to work that day."

"Oh, please. Call in sick."

"I said I can't," Tally snapped. Johanna jumped back, and Tally soon realized why. A gold flash of light shot from the latter to the former, causing this reaction.

"Freak," Johanna shrieked, dashing off out the front door.

"Better run, bitch."

Tally walked to the Egyptian Wing, she found Ahkmenrah easily, and she allowed him to pull her into an embrace and nuzzle her nose. "Hello, Tally."

"Hi, Ahk."

"How are you and your little person?"

"Well, according to the doctor, we're both just fine, and it's about to develop into a fetus."

"So what is it now?"

"An embryo. I've only been pregnant for about a month."

"How does it feel?"

"Odd. I mean, I can do without certain things, but you wouldn't believe what I've been eating lately."

"Like what?"

"Jalepenos straight out of the jar, oh, and once I had bananas and cottage cheese."

"That sounds normal."

"Oh, yeah? Try pickles and Funions together on for size."

"What are Funions?"

"I dunno, onion rings, I think. I craved them for some reason."

"I've heard about those during pregnancy. It's quite common."

"Yeah. It's a pretty damn weird pregnancy that doesn't come with cravings."

Ahkmenrah chuckled and squeezed Tally gently, stroking her hair.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Tally had been approached several more times, by both Johanna and her bridesmaids, to join her wedding, and each time, she turned the offer down with the same or a similar phrase: "I'd rather die."

Meanwhile Jesse watched a variety of baloons and streamers go up in the Western Wing, and they were rearranged, torn down, replaced, time and time again, under McPhee's direction. The scene behind him continued to show a town typical of the old west as portrayed in dime novels and stories told by tourists, stories of the sort even he was familiar with.

Tally leaned against one of the pillars in the Egyptian wing, chewing her lip. Ahkmenrah leaned next to her, lacing his fingers through hers. "Are you sure you don't want to participate in your mother's wedding?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm sure," Tally replied, "and she's not my mother."

"She brought you into the world, didn't she?"

"That's beside the point."

"Is it?"

"Yes, it is."

"Tally, are you alright?"

"A hundred per cent. I'd be even better if this woman wasn't trying to host her wedding here and get me into it, but I'm doing just fine."

"Are you?"

"Yes, I am." Tally closed her eyes and ran her thumb back and forth across the back of Ahkmenrah's hand. "You know what I still don't believe?"

"What?"

"I'm carrying our child."

"I thought you'd have accepted it by now."

"I've never been pregnant before. I don't know what it feels like."

"What does it feel like right at this moment?"

"I dunno, weird, I guess."

"Don't you like it?"

"I dunno yet. Give me some time to figure it out."

"Forgive me for rushing you."

Tally leaned into Ahkmenrah and squeezed his hand. "I forgive you. After all, pharaohs, heirs, gotta have each other."

"So you do understand."

"If only basically."

The two slipped into a comfortable silence for several minutes before Tabby asked, "What do we name it?"

"That depends on gender. If we have a son, I hope we name him Ramses."

"Well, what if we have a girl?"

"That's your call."

"How do you feel about Cecile, or Cecilia, after her great-grandfather?"

"They're both beautiful."

Tally cracked a smile. "What? I didn't know you were that easy."

"I guess I'm that way." The two exchanged a chuckle before slipping back into comfortable silence.

McPhee sighed once he'd finally arranged everything for the reception in perfect order, just thirty minutes to show time. He walked out to the lobby to give the warning when Johanna walked into the wing. "Oh, I see you've finished," she said. "Well, we don't have time to change it."

"Nor do I have the energy. Don't make me summon it," McPhee replied, walking past Johanna and out of the wing.

Tally joined Larry at the threshold of the Western Wing as the reception launched into full swing, and Jesse also leaned against the wall, watching the party rather than participating in it. Ahkmenrah joined Tally in a matter of minutes, and the two leaned into each other.

Johanna dance her new groom, a short man with a brown moustache and goatee which swallowed his lips and a matching mop of hair swept into what tried to be a formal style but ended up looking incredibly cheesy.

After the first dance, Ahkmenrah invited Tally out onto the dance floor, and they were joined by a few other couples. She could feel Johanna's eyes on her, and when the older woman got the chance, she snuck over to Tally and whispered, "Pregnant I see."

"Yeah, what's your point?" Tally snapped.

"So, how's the grandchild?"

"Why do you care?"

"Trust me. I'm your mother."

Johanna walked off and Tally muttered in a shrill voice, "'Trust me. I'm your mother'."

"Is everything alright?" Ahkmenrah asked.

"I swear, if that woman calls herself my mother again, I might have to kill her."

"Do you feel she hasn't earned the right?"

"Of course she hasn't earned it. Look, this week represents the first time I've seen her in years. She almost had to introduce herself to me three days ago."

"This is an interesting little bit of information." He pulled her close and stroked her hair. "It should be over soon."

"So why do I have the feeling this is all going to go downhill?"

"Maternal instinct?"

"Must be it, or I'm slowly but surely losing my mind."

"You're not losing your mind. I'm sure you're onto something, if your instincts are of any value to you."

"Maybe I am."

The croud for the reception began to disperse and Johanna walked over to Tally. "You be good to them," she hissed before walking out the door. The night guard rolled her eyes and sat down on a bench.

"God, what a night," she groaned. She would've doubled over if it weren't for the child growing in her stomach.

McPhee walked over and said, "May I have a word with you in my office?"

"About what?"

"I'd...uh...rather not discuss it here."

"Okay, then." Tally pulled herself to her feet and followed McPhee to his office. "So, what's so important?"

"I feel you may need to start wearing...maternity wear."

"Maternity wear? Well, I guess, eventually, I'm not gonna have a choice. Isn't it against...protocol? Y'know, for uniforms and stuff?"

"Don't worry. Besides, I don't know how long that uniform will fit you within the next nine months."

"You know?"

"Your boyfriend's really excited."

"I imagine. Sounds like him to tell everyone there's a fifty-fifty chance he's having a son."

McPhee cracked a smile and said, "So, what do you think?"

"Gotta start somewhere I guess. I just didn't know how you felt about it."

"I'm completely alright with it."

"Then that's all I need to know."

"Carry on."

Tally walked out of the office, pondering her options.

Ahkmenrah leaned against the Western Wing, examining the scene in Jesse's display. Typically scenes replayed themselves night after night, but some force had given this one a life of its own, and a stone burrowed deep in his stomach told him this force wasn't on the side of the sun.

An older man with a harsh, gaunt face and snake eyes locked gazes with him, and Ahkmenrah shuddered. There was something familiar about those eyes, why they reminded him of a snake.

If speaking of the devil was one way to summon him, thinking of the devil was the other way to do so, because the man disappeared and a giant black snake flew out of the scene, coiling its tail expertly around Ahkmenrah's wrists. The snake flew back into the scene before Ahkmenrah could cry out for help, though he did manage to try.

Tally found herself siezed by a fear she barely recognized, and she dashed off to the Western Wing, where Ahkmenrah was being towed off by a black snake which struck a chord in her. She dove after them, missing Ahkmenrah's ankle by inches.

Her arm dangled into the scene for a second before she pulled herself to her feet and swore loudly.

"What happened?" Jesse asked, and Tally rolled her eyes.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

Jesse and Tally found Larry in the lobby, and Larry instantly asked, "What happened?" his eyes on Tally.

"Look, I...Ahk, he's...he's been...kidnapped."

"What? Kidnapped? What are you talking about?"

"C'mon." Tally and Jesse pulled Larry down to the Western Wing, and the scene in Jesse's display seemed to have returned to the images of a train robbery in action. "I know he's in here somewhere."

"You're sure?" Larry asked.

"Positive. Something's just really wrong."

"Like how?" Jesse asked.

"He's in there somewhere. The train robbery's a cover of some kind, which means Jesse's harboring some form of evil."

"Whaddaya mean, like I'm shelterin' a fugitive?"

"Yes, exactly like you're sheltering a fugitive, except what we're looking for isn't a fugitive. It's not even human."

"What is it?"

"Remember when Ahk told you guys about Apep, the snake demon of darkness?"

"Yeah," Jesse and Larry said at the same time and with the same sort of drawl.

"That's what we're dealing with."

Larry and Jesse exchanged blank glances, and gradually, Larry's expression drifted into something of a horror. Jesse's face remained blank, however.

"So who's with me?"

"Doing what?" Jesse asked.

"Getting Ahkmenrah back. No matter what, we can't let Apep win."

"Are you sure about this?" Larry asked.

"A hundred percent."

"Then let's go."

Tally jumped through the picture first, followed by Larry and Jesse. She landed in a boat, minus Larry and Jesse, who were nowhere in sight.

In fact, as Tally looked around, some of the tales Ahkmenrah had told her seemed to suddenly make sense. The boat she was in was in the middle of a wide river, and it was almost pitch black all around.

"How do you not wonder why you were brought here?"

She turned to the speaker, who she recognized from her last encounter with Apep. "I...actually...yeah. Look, I kinda can't right now, because I walked into the picture with two companions, and I don't see them."

"I see," he said, stepping forward. "This is perhaps Ptah's greatest design."

"What does that mean?"

"You understand evil, I know you do. You've fought it before. Your two companions are different. They've less of a concept of evil and good, light and darkness."

"So that's why I'm down here and they're not?"

"Yes. You've got power, Tally, but you also have a sense of purpose, loyalty, perhaps?"

"Yeah, I guess you could say that."

"What's she doing here?" Set hissed, brandishing a knife.

"Don't," the other said.

"Oh, God," Tally whispered. "It makes sense now. You're Ra," she gestured to the younger of the two, "and this is the evening boat. The only thing missing is-"

"Apep," all three said at the same time.

Jesse and Larry looked around, finding themselves in an old western town, sans Tally. "Where'd she go?" Jesse asked.

"Wish I knew," Larry replied.

"Least we can start lookin' for that kid."

"Ahkmenrah."

"Right. Him."

The two walked into town, Larry following Jesse, who was watching every civilian for any sign that any one of them were hiding anything. After a minute, Jesse stopped, forcing Larry to stop.

The building was a plain one, with a standard facade, and it looked more like an office building. After a moment, Jesse and Larry walked inside to discover that it was actually a riproaring saloon, and packed to capacity. "Some walls," Larry muttered.

Jesse, however, stepped up to the bar and asked the bartender, "'Scuse me, but where can I find this place's owner?"

"Oh, Mr. Van Hauser? Upstairs," the bartender said, filling a glass with a cocktail.

Jesse walked back to Larry and pulled the night guard behind him and up the stairs. He knocked on one of the doors, and the voice on the other side asked, "Do you have an appointment?"

Jesse kicked down the door and replied, "Nope, but you do."


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

At first, Jedediah couldn't believe what he was seeing, so he gestured to Octavius and asked him to confirm this.

The museum was abuzz with the news that a) Ahkmenrah had gone missing, and b) Tally, Jesse, and Larry had gone to look for him. Most of the exhibits presented conspiracy theories, and the ones from the Western Wing claimed to know the real truth, about a black snake taking the pharaoh prisoner.

"Remember the snake thing?" Jed asked.

"All too well," Octavius replied. "You know what they say about history."

"Well, guess we're in for it, then."

"We are, indeed, my love, but not to worry."

"Why?"

"Because I'm with you." Octavius rested a hand on Jed's shoulder, and Jed rested his hand over Octavius'. "Always."

Mr. Van Hauser was an older, gaunt, slender man dressed impeccably. He rose to his feet slowly, easily, as if he were much younger. "What have I an appointment for?" he asked, his voice as slow as he had been a moment before. "I was under the impression that I had an evening to myself for once."

"Listen, buddy," Larry snapped, stepping forward and pointing at Van Hauser. "Where's Ahkmenrah?"

"Who?"

"Don't play dumb with me, pal. Where is he?"

"Answer him or I'll shoot," Jesse said, drawing and cocking his gun, taking direct aim at Van Hauser.

Van Hauser vanished, a gigantic black snake taking his place and flying off into a portal.

"Great, that's just great," Larry hissed.

Tally first caught sight of the portal when a giant snake flew out of it. "Found him," she said.

"Ah, he's returned," Ra replied. "I wonder what he could want this time."

"Any number of things," Set added. "Power would be one of them."

"I thought that was you."

The snake lunged for Tally, and without a thought, she could feel power surging through her. It shout out of her in the form of gold lightning and struck the snake in the middle of his bottom jaw.

The snake threw his head back and was forced to redirect his course. "Nice shot," Ra said.

"Thanks, I think."

The snake lunged again, but this time it was Ra who fought back, with more focus than Tally had. The snake coiled up and disappeared again. "He's been doing that sort of thing all night tonight."

"Explains how he found the time to kidnap my baby's father."

"Yes, it does explain that little sweetheart, if I may use the term."

"You're fine."

"What's he after?"

"Wait a sec. Apep's the embodiment of darkness, right?"

"Yes."

"I'm not fully sure what all the tablet can do or what I can do because of how I'm connected to it, but unless I'm mistaken, he's after the tablet so he can bring eternal night."

"Why on Earth would he do that?"

"Chaos."

"Even so, people will eventually settle into a routine with eternal night, just as they would with the pattern they have now."

"Until all the plants die, the animals can't be fed, and eventually, society collapses."

"Mm, a bit of a problem that. We'll have to fix this."

"Exactly. I dunno how much time we have, but hopefully, its enough."

Jed and Octavius organized the miniatures to dial McPhee's number, and the museum director mumbled a very sleepy "Hello?"

"We got us a problem," Jed said. "Ahk's missin'."

"What?" McPhee was more alert now, more concerned. "How?"

"We dunno yet, but Larry and Tally went after him."

"Anyone else?"

"That Jesse feller."

"Oh. Is it that bad?"

"I dunno, we dunno. Look, we got a problem, and it could get real bad real fast."

"So why are you telling me this?"

"It's your museum, isn't it?" Octavius asked.

"Oh, yes, of course. What do you recommend?"


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

Tally stared after Apep, furrowing her brow. "So, what, he can appear and disappear at will now?"

"He seems to have this ability every now and again," Ra replied.

"So, where is he now?"

"That depends on where he was last seen, or where he wants to go."

"Sounds like a pretty big fish we've gotta fry."

"As it were."

Tally sighed and adjusted her seat on the plank spreading the width of the boat. She looked around at the water as it gradually began to reflect more and more light, and she turned to Ra, whose skin was growing increasingly more radiant. "We're running out of time, aren't we?"

"Yes, we are."

"So what do we do?"

"Think of something."

"What if we don't come up with something in time?"

"Then we deal with that when we come to it."

"Great," Tally muttered.

Larry and Jesse rushed out of the saloon and into the street, where more and more drunks were stumbling over themselves trying to get home. Jesse easily spotted Van Hauser at the edge of town on Main Street, walking toward them easily, swaggering, almost. He cocked his gun and took aim.

"Think that trick's gonna work on me?" Van Hauser asked. "You two should never have come after me."

"We just want Ahkmenrah back," Larry said. "That's all."

Van Hauser snickered. "You think it's going to be that easy, Lawrence? It really isn't. Now, are you ready to die?"

Ahkmenrah slipped his hands out from the rope and ripped the tape off from over his mouth. There were sounds of an escalating confrontation in the street above him and to his left.

He walked briskly up the steps and pushed open the trap door which led to the saloon, which was crouded and smelled like beer. He managed to squeeze his way out with some drunkard's knife, which he readied just as he exited the door.

"We ain't expectin' this to be easy," Jesse hissed, his gun still level with Van Hauser's chest. "We want the kid, and then we're out. That's the deal."

"I'm afraid I can't come up with a pleasing enough option for you, then," Van Hauser said, stepping closer to Jesse and Larry.

"Dammit," Larry muttered. "Take us to Ahkmenrah."

"I'm right here, Larry," Ahkmenrah said. All three turned to face him, and he threw the knife directly at Van Hauser's chest. Van Hauser was gone and replaced by a giant black snake just before contact, and the knife buried itself in the wall of a building just across the street.

"Again," the snake hissed, "it's not going to be that easy." He lunged for Ahkmenrah, and Larry tackled the pharaoh just before the snake got to him. Instead of crashing through the wall, however, the snake redirected its course and shot toward the window to the museum.

"Now what?" Jesse asked.

"We go after him," Ahkmenrah said as Larry helped him to his feet. "What other choice do we have?"

Ra paused, his eyes glowing a gold color in their entirety. Both Set and Tally turned to watch him. Finally, the sun god whispered, "He's escaped."

"God, he's in the museum, isn't he?"

"Yes."

"Dammit."

"Is that bad?"

"Is it bad? Is it bad? Have you lost your mind? Of course this is bad. You know that tablet that belongs to Ahkmenrah?"

"Yes?"

"That's where it is."

"Well, this is bad."

Tally bit her tongue, wondering why she was willingly working with someone so dense.

Jed stared, slack-jawed, at the snake which flew through the Diorama Room, headed in the direction of the lobby. He gestured to Octavius, who gave his men a command in Latin.

For his part, Jed called out, "Follow me, boys," and together, he and Octavius led their combined forces over the diorama ledges and into the room, and the leaders made a quick check, ensuring everyone was alright. In their respective formations, or lack thereof, they walked into the lobby.

McPhee walked through the front door of the museum, just as Larry was about to re-lock it. He was about to ask what was wrong when a gigantic black snake flew toward him. Larry pulled him down and said, "Run," before he could do anything else, pulling McPhee along behind him down one of the corridors.

"What's happening?" McPhee asked.

"No time to explain. Cliff-notes version: We're being attacked by the Egyptian demon of darkness."

"Oh, yes, well..."

"Oh, God, where's Tally?"

"She's not here? How?"

"I dunno. She jumped in with us, but she didn't land with us."

"Land? Land where?"

"In Jesse's picture?"

"You'll have to explain everything to me."

"Not now."

Loud noises echoed through the museum, silencing the two men instantly, and the giant snake appeared before them.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

"This is where you get off," Ra said, pulling the barge toward one of the banks of the river. "You have the power within yourself to get back to the museum. Trust me."

"How do I-" Tally began, but Ra held up a hand for silence, and she climbed out of the boat. "You're absolutely sure I can get home?"

"Yes."

"Is it like astral projection?"

"Close."

Tally wanted to say more, but the barge sailed off, and she took a few steps away from the bank, her head bowed back with a heavy sigh. "What am I gonna do?" she said to herself.

Ahkmenrah's rendering of a battle between Ra and Apep returned to her, and at that point, she knew where to go.

"Take me to him," she whispered, and she vanished entirely in golden light.

Kahmunrah was pacing back and forth in the Egyptian wing when Akhmenrah walked in. "Where have you been?" he demanded in Egyptian.

"Busy freeing myself from Apep," Ahkmenrah replied. It was about this point that Tally appeared in a flash of golden light in the Egyptian wing, next to the sarcophagus. "Tally," Ahkmenrah breathed.

"No time. Really." She rushed down the corridors, toward the lobby just as Apep floated inside.

"Oh, hello, Talia," he said, with Johanna's voice, as the snake shifted into her form. "How's this for a bombshell?"

McPhee and Larry walked down the corridor, checking around every few steps, until they reached the lobby. Johanna was staring Tally down, giving Larry pause. "What the hell?" he whispered.

"Why won't you listen to me, Talia?" Johanna asked. "I'm your mother."

"You were never my mother, and neither was the real one," Tally hissed in reply.

"What are you talking about? Of course I'm your mother."

Tally raised her hand, and to Larry and McPhee's surprise, her eyes glowed. Eventually, the rest of her body followed, and she began to levitate. Gold lightning shot out of her hand, striking Apep/Johanna in the chest.

Tally landed almost suddenly, watching as Johanna shifted back into Apep, and she was sure he was barely conscious. Even so, Apep slithered back into the air. "You honestly think it's going to be that easy, girl?"

"Actually, I know it's not, since there's almost no way to destroy you," Tally replied. "I just need you back in the underworld."

"I just got free again. Do you honestly think I'm going to go back?"

"Doubted you would." Tally gathered her strength again, feeling that power, something of a light, surging through her. Apep lunged for her, and again, she shot at him with her power, but this time, a giant stone spear flew through the air, burying itself in Apep's skull.

She collapsed to the lobby floor, feeling more drained than ever before, and her eyes drifted to the corridor leading to the Egyptian wing, where Ahkmenrah and one of his stone dog-headed guards stood. "Did...did you...?"

Ahkmenrah walked over to her and knelt next to her. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, just a little weak, is all."

"You'll be fine, I swear it."

"Don't get hurt."

"I won't. I swear."

Ahkmenrah got to his feet and walked over to the squirming, writhing Apep. Tally pulled herself to her feet and walked over to him. "What do we do with it?" she asked.

"I'm not sure," Ahkmenrah replied. "Is there a way you can send him off?"

"Let me give it a shot." Tally closed her eyes and reached out to the snake, barely touching it. She dovoted her mind to returning him to the night river, where he belonged, and he vanished, screaming in utter agony at the golden light surrounding it.

Tally collapsed again, losing utter consciousness.


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Several days later, Jed and Octavius listened in awe as Jesse, Larry, Ahkmenrah, and Tally related the details of their recent adventure. When they finished and Tally went to have her fit of two-o-clock morning sickness, Jed whispered, "Think we'd ever do that?"

"Do what?"

"Y'know, fight off dark gods and shit like that?"

"We could if we were life-size. Of this I'm sure."

Jed pulled Octavius closer and whispered in his ear, "I'd do it for you."

"And I for you," Octavius whispered in reply, kissing Jed.

Ahkmenrah and Kahmunrah sat on the bench just outside the Egyptian wing, in something of an awkward silence, which Ahkmenrah broke in his mother tongue. "Is it over, do you think?"

"Personally," Kahmunrah replied, "I feel it's never over."

"Will we always be the ones fighting?"

"Perhaps, perhaps not, but if we do anything good in the upper world, let this be it."

"I don't understand it. Three years ago and prior, you wanted to kill me. Now you're all about doing good. What's changed?"

Kahmunrah rested his arm around his brother's shoulders. "I've almost lost everything. Not this time."

"Have I changed something?"

"I can't be sure. I'm assuming a lot of things."

Ahkmenrah found himself leaning into his brother, his eyes closed. "I'm glad they did," he whispered.

Tally sighed and slumped against the apartment door at dawn, rubbing her eyes. The apartment at dawn was exactly as she had expected to find it, and she walked into the bathroom, almost certain she was about to be sick again. After an hour, when the nausea passed, she walked into her bedroom and passed out on bed.

The next day, Tally and Larry found themselves walking into the museum and clocking in and around the same time. They split the rounds, and, afterward, she walked into the Egyptian Wing, opening the sarcophagus.

Ahkmenrah pulled her into him and nuzzled her nose. "How are you feeling?"

"Just about as okay as I can be for being pregnant."

He climbed out of his sarcophagus and held her close for a while. "Is it a challenge for you?"

"Not at this point, but I guess it gets worse about seven or eight months from now."

"I'm glad. I don't want this to be too hard on you."

"How the hell should I know? I haven't been pregnant before."

"Oh, well, that changes things entirely."

"Maybe for you, with your ancient sensibilities."

"Ancient?"

"You're the only guy I know that actually actively cares about having a first born son."

"Am I? I thought there were others, like my brother."

"Well, yes, but people today, they're different. They aren't after sons as avidly as they were."

"Ah, I see. Now it makes sense."

"It's kind of a complicated thing."

"Yes, it is."

Tally closed her eyes and leaned into Ahkmenrah a little more.


	11. Epilogue

Epilogue

Octavius lay on his bed, Jedediah at his side. "Do you think life as we know it is finally going to return to normal?" Octavius asked.

"Dunno. Guess that depends on what normal means," Jed replied.

The general cuddled up next to his cowboy. "What about for us? We've seen battle after battle, some of which we could never have participated in."

"Least we tried to."

"Yes, at least we tried. Hopefully it's worth something."

"I'm pretty damn sure it is."

Jed snaked his arms around Octavius' waist and sqeezed the Roman gently.

Tally took a seat on the bench just outside the Egyptian wing, and Ahkmenrah walked out to join her. "How are you?" he asked.

"I'm doing okay," she replied.

"There's something I've been meaning to ask you for some time." Ahkmenrah sat down on the bench as he said this.

"What?"

"Will...will you...will you marry me?"

Tally smiled and leaned in toward Ahkmenrah. "Yes, I'll marry you."

He pulled her into him and kissed her excitedly, nuzzling her nose after he pulled away.


End file.
